I’m still trying to figure out exactly what the theme of this blog should be. It’s about what I’m working on (as far as writing is concerned) and some of the trials, successes, and anxieties associated with the writing life. But it’s also about what I’m reading and thinking about. Good readers make good writers, right? Lately, I’ve had the opportunity to read more books than usual, and I’m sharing a review of the most recently read book here on the blog.The review is about Proof of Heaven by Dr. Eben Alexander, and I’m copying it right from my review on Amazon.com.

Even the most cynical and skeptical of readers will easily get caught up in this book and find themselves thinking, “What if?” The author, a neurosurgeon, develops E.coli bacterial meningitis. In a coma for seven days with virtually no brain activity except those related to life support, the comatose doctor has an out-of-body experience that transforms the way he thinks, behaves, and relates to other people.

Before his sickness, Dr. Alexander described himself as more scientific than religious. Although he and his colleagues had heard innumerable NDEs (Near Death Experience) from patients over the years, they were skeptical, almost dismissive of the accounts. But then, one night he went to the bed with a backache and was in a coma in ICU the next morning. For the next several days while his family and friends kept a round-the-clock vigil, Dr. Alexander was experiencing other realms and feeling love like he’d never known it.

There’s much to read and ponder in Proof of Heaven. Dr. Alexander states something that I’ve somehow always “known,” that the death of the body and the brain are not the end of consciousness and that human experience continues beyond the grave. He quotes Sir John C. Eccles when he mentions, “We have to recognize that we are spiritual beings with souls existing in a spiritual world as well as material beings with bodies and brains existing in a material world.”

Dr. Alexander’s training and experience as a surgeon are evident on nearly every page, and it’s this scientific background that make his findings and writings that much more credible. Although much of the medical terminology was unfamiliar to me, I enjoyed learning more about the body and brain. Especially enlightening were the passages about consciousness (what it is, how it works, how there are so many things beyond human awareness).

For anyone who’s ever wondered about his or her place in the universe, this book is a must-read. As the author states, “Each and every one of us is deeply known and cared for by a Creator who cherishes us beyond any ability we have to comprehend.

I found Dr. Alexander’s book to be instructive and inpsirational, informational and calming, scientific and spiritual. Has anyone else out there in Blogland read it? If so, what did you think?